Baez returns to action after hit by pitch

CHICAGO -- A day after he was hit on the left elbow by a pitch, Javier Baez said on Monday that he was fine, which was verified when he entered in the seventh inning of Tuesday's 4-3 loss in the opener of a split doubleheader vs. the Dodgers.

The Cubs got a scare in the third inning on Sunday, when Baez was hit by a pitch from Cardinals starter Jack Flaherty and had to leave the game. The initial diagnosis was a contusion, and Baez did not need X-rays on Monday. He came on as a defensive replacement on Tuesday and singled in his only at-bat.

CHICAGO -- A day after he was hit on the left elbow by a pitch, Javier Baez said on Monday that he was fine, which was verified when he entered in the seventh inning of Tuesday's 4-3 loss in the opener of a split doubleheader vs. the Dodgers.

The Cubs got a scare in the third inning on Sunday, when Baez was hit by a pitch from Cardinals starter Jack Flaherty and had to leave the game. The initial diagnosis was a contusion, and Baez did not need X-rays on Monday. He came on as a defensive replacement on Tuesday and singled in his only at-bat.

"I've been hit there, and it's like you lose your breath," Chicago manager Joe Maddon said on Sunday. "There's so many nerves in that part. It really really hurts, it just hurts. It's in a spot where you have to bend and you can't bend."

Roster move• The Cubs placed left-hander Brian Duensing on the bereavement list on Monday and recalled left-hander Rob Zastryzny from Triple-A Iowa. Duensing posted on Twitter that his grandfather died on Saturday.